You were here all along
by SilverandRed
Summary: I'm doing Aunna's challenge no. 1. A Chitauri fic and i don't own SRMTHFG
1. meet the parents

A languid afternoon in Shuggazoom. No treats, nothing. Everyone was doin' their own thing, including the hyperforce. Everything was peaceful… until someone knocked on the entrance of the Super Robot.

That distracted Sprx and Chiro from their video game playing.

"Kid! I almost beat my high score!" Sprx cried in frustration as the words 'game over' appeared on the screen.

"Hah, Sprx. Good luck for you! Guess I'm a better pilot than you!" Chiro chuckled as he's score was still higher than the red simian.

"No way, kid! Am not!"

"Are too!"

The knocking continued, until Nova came into the room.

"Hey, are you two gonna fight all day or open the door?" she asked, walking towards the entrance.

"Bet its another one of the fans. They've been irritating me all week!" Sprx cried in frustration. A nod of agreement followed.

Nova was half expecting a bunch of fans rushing in, but when she opened the door, a young couple greeted her. A beautiful, young girl was by their side.

"Hi." The male greeted. "Mind if we come in?"

At this time, Chiro walked towards the door. But when he saw who the visitor was, he gasped.

"M-mom… d-dad, what are you doing here?" he said, pulling them inside.

"Darling!" Chiro's mom cried in happiness as she hugged her son.

"Monkey Team! You have got to report to the Command Center immediately!" Chiro said as he activated his communicator.

Whirling noises were heard as the remaining 3 monkeys rushed down their respective tubes. They were shocked to see the surprise visitors.

"Who are they?" Otto asked a look of surprise and shock on his face.

"Ya, kid! What's going on?" Sprx said.

Chiro calmed the monkeys down.

"Chill guys! These are my parents, Mr and Mrs Nielli."

"Parents?" Antauri raised a(imaginary) eyebrow.

"Ya… kinda…" the teen responded, laughing nervously.

"What my son says is true." Mr Nielli declared. "We are his birth parents."

An awkward silence followed, until Gibson broke it.

"Well, in that case," the scientist said, stepping closer to Chiro's parents. "I am Mr. Hal Gibson. Do not call me Mr, or Hal, just Gibson, please."

One by one, the monkeys introduced themselves.

"I'm Otto,"

"Name's SPRX 77. You can call me Sprx."

"I am known as Antauri,"

"My name is Nova."

Mrs Nielli smiled. Her heart was thumping furiously.

"Nice to meet you," she turned to Chiro. "Anyway, Chi, this is your friend, Lanet."

Mrs Nielli pointed to the girl who kept quiet all along.

"Lanet?"

"Yes. We brought her here because we thought you might be rather lonely. She'll stay here with you." Mr Nielli boomed. Before Chiro could reject, his mom pecked him on the cheek.

"Bye, dear. We'll leave you and Lanet here,"

And with that, the couple left.


	2. So close to the true

Antauri's POV

My head was buzzing with questions. Nothing made sense. Why hadn't Chiro told us about his parents before? Who was Lanet? Why did Chiro's parents think that he was lonely? I mean, he had us, right? The others seem to think the same as they also wanted to ask, but nothing came out. Finally, Chiro broke the silence.

"If you have no more questions, I'm gonna show Lanet around the robot, if you don't mind,"

Nova gave the boy a small nod, but I could sense that Chiro wanted to get away from us as soon as possible. He was hiding something from us… but what was it?

Lanet spoke for the first time.

"Show me the training room, Chi. I wanna show you some of my moves."

"Moves? What moves?" Chiro asked.

"Remember the annual Shuggazoom kung fu contest? I win every year," Lanet boasted.

"OK,"

The pair ran off, while we gathered around.

"Something tells me not to trust Lanet," I began.

"But she seems ok to me," Otto said.

"Yes, but its not everyday the kid's parents show up at the front door." Sprx said.

"Chiro didn't even tell us about his childhood." Nova added.

"And now the kid has to baby sit his friend who won every year. I'm sure the kid's gonna beat her if they spar."

"This isn't about kung fu, Sprx. That's not important. We don't even know who Lanet is, and yet, Chiro's already charmed by her." Antauri stated. "I have a feeling that Chiro's keeping something from us…"

Gibson was the only one who kept quiet all along.

"What's wrong, brainstrain?" Sprx asked, staring at his brother.

"This conversation… doesn't sound like us… I mean, we don't usually suspect Chiro of being guilty or anything, right?"

A pause.

"Yes, Gibson's absolutely right. Chiro will tell us everything when the time is right." The silver primate said.

"I'll go check on those two," Nova offered, walking to the training room.

A few days had gone and Chiro still haven't told us anything. It just isn't like him to keep a secret away from us. I gave up. I'm going to ask Chiro the true. He was in his room playing with Lanet his Sun Riders action figures. Recently, the teen found out that they share a lot in common, but I can't help feeling…suspicious. Whenever I'm near Lanet, a dark aura always seems to surround her.

I knock the door to his room.

"Hey, Tauri," Chiro greeted as Lanet appeared by his side.

"Can I speak to you for a moment, Chiro?" I asked politely.

"Sure," he said as he followed me to a corner of the robot. "So…wassup?"

I took a deep breath before replying,

"Its about your parents, Chiro. You never told us about them. Why?"

"Can we…er… talk about this tonight? Just give me more time to answer that question. I want the whole team to know the true, ok? I'll tell you tonight, I promise."

I sighed. "Fine. Tonight at eight."


	3. The truth at last!

"You're gonna tell them? About me, about them?" Lanet stared at the me in disbelief.

"Yea, I guess… I can't keep secrets from them, especially the silver one. He always knows what I'm hiding." I said.

"And do you like that?"

"…Maybe…"

"But how can you tell? To betray us for a bunch of robot monkeys!"

"Look, Lanet. My parents brought you here for a good reason. And I appreciate that."

"Just cook up some silly story, Chi! You can't tell them the true!"

"I'm telling them the true," I muttered. "But not the whole true…"

"So, what's your story, kid? Spill the beans!" Sprx urged me impatiently. The monkey team is gathered in the command center, each of them holding a different expression. Otto's expression was excited, Sprx's expression was impatient, Gibson was curious and Nova was frowning. Antauri's one was blank.

"Fine, but you promise not to laugh. You see," I began. "My parents are dead. They died in a car accident. But even dead, they come visit me every two years. And when they come, they ask me for my wish. I was 12 when they last came, and I was miserable. So I asked them for a friend that's loyal and like me for me. They promised to give me a friend on their next visit."

"And the friend is Lanet?" Nova asked.  
"Yep. Lanet's a friend I've always wanted. She's everything to me."

"So what is she? A ghost?" Sprx snorted.

"Nope. She's a human, just like me."

"C'mon. Like anyone will believe that! Now tell us the truth. Who is Lanet? She could be a spy for Skeleton King for all you know."

_If only I'd listen to Sprx… but of course, I didn't._

"She is not!" I protested.

"How do you know? Jinmay once was. And you also fell for those two girls in space!"

"But… she is brought here by MY PARENTS!"

"But why didn't you tell us in the first place? Why did you keep that secret until NOW?"

"Because… because I didn't want anyone to know I was related to the dead… I didn't want anyone to think that I was… crazy…"

I could see Sprx's eyes soften a little.

"Kid, we'll never think that you're crazy. But we don't keep secrets from each other. We are friends and you know you can trust us… even I admitted to everyone that I had a secret stash of snacks under my bed and I took one of Nova's soft toys so I could fall asleep every night…"

"What did you DO!" Nova yelled.

"Umm… nothing,"

"You'd better return that back!"

"Ya, ok, later. After I'm done talking. So, why is this secret special from the others?"

"You don't understand! I… I didn't actually mean it… and let's just say I forgot bout it until now…"

"Then what is this doing in your room?" Sprx held up Chiro's daily planner. "22nd August: Parents visiting. Gotta keep the monkey team away from them."

"Chiro… are you lying to us?" Otto said softly.

"No! It's just that… I … I…"

"Why don't you want us to see your parents? They're kinda nice… I think…" the mechanic whispered.

My mind desperately searched for the right words to form a sentence. But I seem to fail.

"Umm…"

I'm so frustrated! Didn't the monkey team want the truth? I told them, and now… they're asking a bunch of questions that I don't even wanna answer.

"Why, Chiro? Why did you keep it a secret for all these years?"

I am so tempted to cover my ears. I wanted to shout back. I wanted to do… something aggressive to them… but this wasn't me. I never wanted to do something aggressive to the monkey team. So where is this feeling coming from?

"Just STOP ASKING QUESTIONS! I TOLD YOU THE TURTH, AND THAT'S ENOUGH! I DIDN'T TELL YOU MY SECRET BECAUSE I CAN'T FIND THE RIGHT TIME! AND YOU," I faced Sprx. "Don't you _dare_ to sneak into my room AGAIN!"

I snatched the planner away and stormed up to my room so I could cry freely.


	4. Comforting you

Skater: I'll update this first before I update Parent Love. And anyway, Sprx fans, sorry for his behavior at Chapter 3. I wanted to make Chiro cry so I used Sprx. Hehe… sorry again…

Chiro: What the hell? You wanted to make me cry!

Skater: Not like I have a choice. You were never good at controlling your temper anyway, monkey boy.

Chiro: Oh yeah? We'll see about that!

Skater: You see? You're angry again. Why is my eyelid twitching?

Chiro: You're just scared that the readers won't like this chapter.

Antauri: Chiro!

Chiro: It's not my fault she's not good at writing.

Nova: Young man, go to your room right now. And you might want to clean it up because Otto dirtied it with mud. Well, please review! And one more reminder: Lanet is not Skater's OC and never will be. She'll destroy her when this story over. So please continue reading!

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"What's wrong, Chi?" the black haired girl asked with worry and disappointment written all over her face.

"As I expected… they didn't believe me. And I trusted them! Why is it so hard to understand that I kept a secret from them?" the sobbing teenager replied, grabbing a pillow and burying his face in it. "Sprx doesn't get pissed off this easily. He's acting like… it's the end of the universe that I didn't tell him a secret. Come on, secrets are secrets and if you spill the beans, it won't be a secret anymore. And am I the only one who finds that reasonable?"

Feeling sorry for Chiro, Lanet decided to gently pat his back.

"C'mon, Chiro. You know what? I've experienced the same thing before and I used to tell myself this: Some people just don't understand the way you feel. Than they accuse you of something you of something because they don't_ know_ how you feel. They rush into things too quickly and misjudge you." Lanet explained slowly, letting Chiro absorb the things she just said. "And same goes for the monkey team. They've never experienced the things you've been through in the past and they didn't exactly expect this is the kind of answer you give."

Chiro looked at her with big, teary eyes, but before he could say anything, a knock on the door was heard.

"Chiro?"

_Antauri._

Ignoring the silver monkey, the teen turned to face Lanet.

"Why… why do I feel like doing something aggressive? Why do I feel like ripping something apart?" he whispered softly, now staring at his own hands.

"Some people are like that when they're angry. Or they feel like they've been misjudged by someone they've known for years." The girl said. "But don't worry. A little hot chocolate might do the trick. Or it may at least calm you down for five minutes."

Wiping away his tears with the back of his hand, Chiro smiled.

"Thanks, Lanet. You really are a good friend."

As the girl began to walk towards the door, Antauri's voice shattered the silence again.

"Chiro?"

As the mechanical door slid open, Lanet looked down. She smiled, trying to hide the hatred she felt for the silver monkey.

"Hey, Tauri. Chiro's inside. You can go speak to him if you want."

Before Antauri could respond, Lanet walked away and entered the kitchen nearby. Slowly, the second-in-command walked into the room. The sight that greeted him nearly tore his heart apart into two.

"Just go away," the teen muttered softly, the pillow still in his hands.

"Chiro," Antauri began, sitting beside Chiro. "Sprx didn't mean to push you that hard and he's really sorry about what happened earlier. Can you please give him a second chance?"

"Fine… but why did he sneak into my room and steal my planner?"

Sighing softly, the silver monkey looked at him into the eye.

"He didn't. You left it on your pod chair yesterday before going to bed. Sprx saw it and wanted to give it back but he was afraid to wake you up since you were already asleep. So he took it to his room and curiosity got the better of him. And he started to read it."

"… I guess I've misjudged him too."

"Thank you for understanding, Chiro. You ought to get some rest now. Tomorrow is going to be a very busy day."

"And is that a warning? Because the last time you said that, thousands of monsters came and attacked Shuggazoom."

"You never know,"

Standing up, the silver monkey left without a word.


	5. Putting my plan into action

Skater: Hi!

Chiro: It's been a looooong time.

Skater: I know. Please review!

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Lanet's POV

"Well then, let's go to bed," the teen yawned, looked at me and grinned. "No worries, there's a spare bed for you. I'll go get it."

Looking satisfied, _I_ returned his grin with her smile. I watched as Chiro left the room and immediately rummaged through the drawer.

"Useless junk," I whispered, holding up a sun rider action figure. "Where does he keep his d*mn communicator? How am I supposed to find something so small in a place that's filled with plastic and metal toys?"

Sighing in deeply, I twirled a stray strand of my hair and pushed in the drawer. Yes, it's true that I had earned Chiro's trust, but not the whole team. No, the silver one was tricky. I needed strategy. Bribe? Definitely not. Lying? Forget about it. Threatening him? Pathetic. Holding Chiro hostage? Utterly pathetic. Putting a deadly virus in his system? Yes, that could work. Now, the question was, where would I find the virus?

Ans: Ask Chiro to make her one.

This was easy. Too easy. The boy had already trusted me with his heart. Chuckling to herself, I stared into empty space. My mission was just too simple. Maybe I'll get her reward soon.

"I can't blame myself for being so smart," I praised myself. "I'm a natural, unlike my useless sister who has already perished cos SK destroyed her. She deserved to die."

Memories came flooding through me: How SK destroyed my sister. The heat from the dark energy was just too strong for her. A real fool, that's what she is. An idiot who doesn't deserve to live. Her screams… Wow, they echoed in my head, just like a movie soundtrack. It was music to my ears. I had enjoyed every second of it. The agony, the pain, the heat. It was just too much. It was such a pity that master didn't use more dark energy to destroy that old witch.

"Hey, Lan, here's your bed,"

Chiro's voice shattered my thoughts into a million pieces. Gritting my teeth, I stood up and smiled warmly at him.

"Thanks you, Chiro," I said, then paused. "I've been curious. What do you transform with?"

He looked puzzled at first, and raised an eyebrow.

"Why do you wanna know that?" he asked.

"Oh, it's just that I want to know more bout ya, and all the adventures you had with the hyper force."

"Well…"

He reached inside his pocket and pulled out a small, round device. Grinning his childish grin, he said, "Oh, I transform with this. Antauri says that once I master the Power Primate, I don't hafta use it anymore, but, I still have to use it to transform now."

"So," I pushed on. "Are you anywhere near to mastering your powers?"

"… No…" he admitted and blushed a little. "But one day, it'll just be a communicator, not a thing to help me transform."

Yes! Yes! Yes! It's also a communicator! Inside me, my heart leaped with much joy and happiness. If I stole it away from him, he wouldn't be able to keep in touch with the team and _he'll be powerless, _which makes my job much easier than before.

"Well, I'm going to bed later, ok?" the teen said. "I'll be back later."

He walked out and I scanned the room, to see if the communicator was in sight.

"Damn you Chiro, why do you have to keep it with you all the time?" I buried my face in a pillow.

Exhaling, I lay down on the bed and thought about my plan. The virus, I'll need it soon. It will take about three days for Antauri to become weak, and when I reach the seventh day, that stupid monkey won't be able to rescue Chiro… from my grasp. I looked at my hand and a black wave of energy surrounded it.

"Tomorrow will be a very special day, Chiro, just you wait and see."


End file.
